My first 5k!!

While Zach was gone, I had been running with his dad several times a week. SOMEHOW, I convinced him to run my first 5k with me...I am THAT sneaky. We decided on the midnight 5k down in St. George on May 24/25 (it started around 11:30 pm so it was both days)Zach's mom was so excited about it that she rented a condo for us for an entire week! I convinced my parents and two of my sisters (my brother was deployed at the time so he couldn't make it but his family did!) to run it with us! Unfortunately, my parents had to bail at the last minute but it was still a lot of fun.

After Zach got home we all continued to train together and then the big day came! Race day! The three of us played ping pong and played in the pool for most of the day and then we had a fantastic steak dinner that Zach's dad prepared. It was SO delicious. We were almost late except I insisted on showing up early for sign in. They said it was starting at 11:59 pm so we thought we had plenty of time...WRONG! However, we made it! Everyone was in glow sticks and dressed in costumes which made it even more fun.

I left my phone in the car so we couldn't find Tiff, the kids, and Ta'Mera until after the race. Ta'Mera wasn't supposed to race but she decided to walk to track with Kyle (4) and Allie (MAYBE 2??) What a trooper! We all beat our goal times and Kaden even took first place in the under 10 males category!!! I have never seen a bigger smile on his face :D I'm a bad aunt, though. As they were reading off the awards his hopes were sky high and I didn't want him to get hurt. I tried to brace him for the chance that he might not win...shows how much I know! We heard his name and he was in shock so I had to push him and tell him that he won before it sunk in! I will never doubt again...I'm a believer

The Fuller side of the race! BAM!

The awesome Nebekers. Corey was having issues with Zach being taller

Kaden and his 1st place medal!!!

Ta'Mera, Allie, and Kaden. 

Everyone had so much fun that we(the Nebeker trio) have already planned to do the race next year. 

"Army Wife: It's not my status; it's my life-long promise to him." ~Anonymous

Reunited and It Feels SO Dang Good!

It's almost been a year since I last posted and SO much has happened! I have had a lot of my readers asking for this particular post for about 8 months so here it is!

APRIL 25, 2013

0400: I'm wide awake because my excitement is just too much! I really did try to sleep longer than that but I couldn't contain it. Off to the shower I go to get dressed and ready for the biggest thing that has probably ever happened to me. 

0530: Out the door as fast as I can so that I can beat the huge traffic jam that is sure to ensue. 

0600: Show up at the Air Guard Airport anxiously awaiting the text that's going to tell me that his plane has FINALLY left Texas!!!

If you can't already tell, today is the day that the love of my life comes home from a deployment that has allowed me to see him for all of two weeks in the last YEAR! I ran into some of my dear Army Wife friends and others who I never got to meet in person but who I came to love so much. For me, it felt like being in a marathon and seeing your entire support group there with you, cheering you on to the end. Yes, there were times when we didn't want to be around each other but they became sisters to me. 

Just a few of the women who got me through every, agonizing, day

My family showed up in time to keep me from going insane! My parents, Zach's parents, my oldest sister, and his younger brother, and his paternal grandparents showed up to see him get off of the plane. I was so grateful that they took time out of their busy schedules to make it! (I lost a lot of my pictures but I'm posting the ones I've got left)

Grandma, Jordan, and Dad

My parental units

Waiting for the plane with Mahauni and Jordan!!

My sign. He makes for such a good model. 

Me and my daddy :)

A sign the Rear D (the part of the company that stays home for support) made for them.

It took a FOREVER for all the seconds to pass. Luckily I had lots of family to help me pass the time. Then it happened. One second there was nothing withing miles and the next...HIS PLANE WAS ROLLING IT!!!! I was, literally, shaking because I was so excited. Then it hit me just how nervous I was. "What if he doesn't like me anymore?" "What if 8 months at Crossfit wasn't enough?" "What if I've changed too much?" "Ahh!! I don't think I can go up there!" I was a basket case of emotions.

The soldiers started piling out of the plane, running to their loved ones and all I could do was let my craziness take over me. Just when I thought I was going to explode, there he was. HE WAS REALLY HOME!!!!! The second I saw his face I started to cry, then I began tapping Jordan on the shoulder saying, "He's here! He's here! There he is!!" I couldn't move though. I wanted to go look for him but I just stood on my chair. Later, Zach told me that his mom found him and "It was nice to see her but you were the only one I was looking for. I couldn't even focus on saying hi to her because I was looking for you." My mom finally snapped me out of it and pulled me off of my chair. I found him and I have never felt more complete. All my fear went away. My soldier was safe. At home. With me.

His plane!

When I saw him get off the plane

First picture of his back on Utah soil

He was looking for me

Aaaaand...he found me

P.S. My fears were completely out of place. He was so excited to be home and our marriage has never been stronger!

"Army Wife: It's not my status; it's my life long promise to him." ~Anonymous

Here's to the Heroes

Here's to the Heroes Tribute

I know it's been a while. Today WAS going to be all about how I'm changing my career...then I found this song and decided to change topics.

I need all of my readers to know how much I LOVE the U.S.A. Yes, we are having problems right now but there is no other country that I would rather live in. I was blessed to be born here and to be born to parents who taught me to have an extreme respect for Old Glory, our national anthem, the men and women who serve every single day, and for those who make the ultimate sacrifice. There are very few things that I will not tolerate in this world and one of them is bashing the country I love and those who choose to serve her. 

12 years ago, our nation was attacked by cowards. So many people died trying to save those who couldn't escape. No, I didn't know anyone personally but I will forever be grateful for their sacrifice. I believe that they have earned themselves a choice place in heaven. The firemen, police officers, soldiers, and people off of the street gave everything so that others could live.

 Just this week, 3 police officers were killed in the line of duty. Two Santa Cruz officers and one Correctional Facility officer. My heart goes out to their families because I could never imagine losing a loved one that way.

These brave men and women aren't the only heroes. Their families are put through more worry in one day than anyone should have to endure in a lifetime but they put on their brave faces and support their family. The kids who are too young to understand why mom or dad aren't coming home anymore, the spouse who is suddenly left alone, the family members who wake up screaming because they just had a nightmare about their hero. THESE people are heroes in my eyes.

So, here's to the heroes. Here's to the brave men and women who fight, every single day, to keep our beloved country free. Here's to the families who stand behind them no matter what. Here's to keeping America free and protecting her people from all enemies foreign and domestic.

My soldier's unit praying together before a mission

"Army Wife: It's not my status; it's my lifelong promise to him."~ Anonymous

She Did WHAT!?

As you read in my New Year's post, one of my Revolutions is to run 3 5k's this year. I told Soldier that I didn't want to run one without him and he was pretty excited about racing with me. I found the race that would give me a chance to learn to run (I have exercise induced asthma so it had to be far enough away that I could train slowly) and would be after he got home from deployment. I have decided on the Midnight 5k in St. George, UT. I figure that midnight is a good time for my first race because then I won't be dying from heat and hating the choice I made to step out of my comfort zone. 

Well, some exciting news, tonight at family dinner with my in-laws I mentioned that we were going to do this race. My FIL (father-in-law) started asking some questions and then said that he wanted to run with us! I am so excited! This made me think about making it a huge family ordeal. So, I called my parents who agreed to race, my sister-in-law who said she'd race, a couple of my other sisters said they would as well, and I'm just waiting to hear back from one of my brothers-in-law. I think this will be such a blast! My, sweetheart, MIL got us a condo for a week so that we could take a little vacation the week after the race. Love her!

I HATE running with a passion that burns deep within my soul but I found this new app that is supposed to help you train in such a way that you learn to love it. I want to start Tuesday and use it Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. My last day on the program will be March 9th and then I can just keep up running 3x's a week. I can still do Crossfit twice/week as my crosstraining. Overkill? Possibly. Worth it? I sure hope so...

*sidenote: I just realized that I can take my dog running with me and get his exercise for the day in. He used to run with Zach every single day...then we moved to SL County. He was bred for energy and this will be so good for him as well :) BAM! Another Revolution accomplished!*

My box (Crossfit gym) is wanting to start a running clinic with some expert runner. I didn't want to do it before but now I'm really inspired to go and learn all that I can. I want to finish my training program and then go and see how I can improve. I have 9 weeks to get to the point where I can run 3 miles. After that, I will have about 11 weeks until the race to drastically improve my time. I'm thinking about having my FIL go running with me once I can keep up with him so that we can both motivate each other to work harder. He is really nervous that he's going to get left behind...I don't think he understands that I am no good at cardio exercise because of my lungs.

Wow...that was quite the ramble...basically, I'm really excited. I'm pretty sure that I'm addicted to getting fit. I want new challenges. I LOVE the way it feels to accomplish something I didn't think I could do. I crave the endorphins that come from a hard workout. Hopefully, it stays this good once I don't have to distract myself all the time :)

I'm so grateful for a family who is so willing to jump at the chance to help me realize my goals. I was definitely blessed to be born into my family and to marry into Soldier's family.

"Army Wife: It's not my status; it's my life long promise to him." ~Anonymous

A Lost Blessing

I left my scriptures in Italy. ("You went to Italy?? It's not blogged about!" I know. When I get the pictures off my camera, I will write a blog/blogs about the trip) When I first discovered this, I. Was. Devastated. It was all I could do to stop myself from bawling. Those scriptures had EVERYTHING in them! I have had them since I was 13-years-old. I left them in Italy because I don't know how to keep track of my own things. I'm dumb. For all I know, they ended up in the trash somewhere...but I can pray that I left them so that they could bless the life of some unsuspecting soul. It had all my quotes and highlights and thoughts from seminary. My cross-references. My testimony. They were my lifeline for such a long time, and I hope that they can provide comfort for someone else. The Lord knows what is best for His children.

I am still pretty upset about it so I can't bring myself to buy new ones. Because of that, my goal to read the scriptures every day failed. I am supposed to be past Omni and I was at the beginning of 2 Nephi. Two days ago I decided that I have the Gospel Library App on all of my electronic devices so I really didn't have an excuse as to why I wasn't reading. Since that discovery, I am almost caught up to where I need to be. I listen while I'm on my way to work every day and it feels awesome! I'm probably not getting as much out of it as I could, but it makes me feel better :) It makes me feel like, no matter how hard the day gets, I have the Savior lifting me up and holding me when I can't walk anymore. So, really, by me losing my scriptures I have been blessed because it brought me closer to my Father in Heaven. 

"Army Wife: It's not my status; it's my life long promise to him." ~Anonymous

You Say You Want a Revolution...

It's that time of year again! New Year's Resolutions!! Woohoo...not. No. I don't make resolutions. I never, ever, ever keep them. I always lose motivation. This year, I'm revolting against resolutions and against my old, lazy me. This year, I'm making New Year's Revolutions. This list will probably change as I think of more things but here it is so far (in no specific order)

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1: Do something that scares me every month.

2: Run 3 5k's throughout the year.

3: Reach 150 lbs by April 13, 2013 and maintain or lose until December 31, 2013.

4: Go on a new adventure every month.

5: Crossfit and Krav Maga twice/week or more.

6: Any grade less than 90% is unacceptable.

7: Learn how to swim!!

8: Get my Concealed Carry Permit by my 22nd birthday.

9: Finish the BOM with husband the day he gets home from deployment.

10: No sugar (other than found naturally) until April 13, 2013

11: Attend some sorts of women's retreat event thingy...

12: Get organized! Plan out my "busy" life so that I am not wasting so much time anymore. 

13: Jax gets 30 minutes of exercise every day.

(red writing is the updated stuff)
14: I will be 100% debt free by December 31, 2013

~Specifics I want to do this year~

Paintballing

Skydiving

Kayaking

Rock Climbing

Survival Course

Make Christmas Cards (finally)

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I'm sure that I will add more onto it later but that will do for now. I want to change my habits and really grow this year. I want to push my limits and not let my fears control me anymore. I'm tired of PTSD controlling everything I do and it's time to take back my life.

"Revolution"--The Beatles

Ok, this video is because I have been trying to write this post for about 2 weeks now. Every time I start to write it, this song gets stuck in my head. Gotta love The Beatles.

"Army Wife: It's not my status; it's my life long promise to him." ~Anonymous